Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Acquired by Signaturefd LLC

Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 13.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,339 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 891 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $475,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 3.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,830,951 shares of the company’s stock valued at $751,780,000 after purchasing an additional 423,112 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 4.1% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 8,582,669 shares of the company’s stock valued at $468,957,000 after purchasing an additional 337,168 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 5.9% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,444,498 shares of the company’s stock valued at $406,767,000 after purchasing an additional 413,572 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 16.5% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,745,302 shares of the company’s stock valued at $368,563,000 after purchasing an additional 957,091 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 9.3% in the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 6,651,629 shares of the company’s stock valued at $363,445,000 after purchasing an additional 568,372 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In related news, Director Daniel L. Johnson acquired 3,350 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $68.38 per share, for a total transaction of $229,073.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 10,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $724,486.10. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Anthony Paul Broersma sold 5,586 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.34, for a total value of $387,333.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Daniel L. Johnson purchased 3,350 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $68.38 per share, with a total value of $229,073.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at $724,486.10. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 36,082 shares of company stock worth $2,584,060. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $77.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 12th. HSBC lifted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their price target on shares of Fastenal from $71.00 to $66.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 15th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $67.67.

Fastenal Trading Up 0.3 %

NASDAQ FAST opened at $67.74 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.49, a current ratio of 4.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Fastenal has a 52 week low of $52.28 and a 52 week high of $79.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.78 billion, a PE ratio of 33.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.05. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $73.49 and a two-hundred day moving average of $66.64.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.91 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.98% and a net margin of 15.68%. The company’s revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 25th will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 24th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.30%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.23%.

About Fastenal

Fastenal Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the wholesale distribution of industrial and construction supplies in the United States, Canada, Mexico, North America, and internationally. It offers fasteners, and related industrial and construction supplies under the Fastenal name. The company's fastener products include threaded fasteners, bolts, nuts, screws, studs, and related washers that are used in manufactured products and construction projects, as well as in the maintenance and repair of machines.